Baseball is a game in which one star player plays a relatively small role. After 2021, the Major League MVP competition is a’Shohei Ohtani vs. Challenger’ composition. This is because, unlike other competitors, Ohtani is active as both a pitcher and a hitter. Ohtani’s best season was last year, when he recorded 9.6 WAR (contributed multiplier vs. replacement) wins. It accounted for 13.1% of the wins (73 wins) of his team, the Los Angeles Angels, last year. In basketball, there is a WS (Winshare) with a similar record. Similar to WAR, a player’s contribution is converted into a win. ‘Basketball Emperor’ Michael Jordan recorded 20.4 WS in the 1995-96 NBA season. His team, the Chicago Bulls, won 72 of 82 games that season, Jordan’s share being 28.3%. It was twice the amount of Ohtani in 2022.
In addition, baseball is a game 토토사이트 in which attacks are made in order according to the batting order organized from 1 to 9. The balance of the 9 positions is important to score. In line with the opening of professional baseball, the 2022’Position Index (PI)’ of 10 clubs was organized. PI is the average value of OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) rankings for each of the 9 offensive positions by club, excluding pinch hitters. The smaller this value is, the more competitive positions there are and fewer ‘holes’ in the batting order. PI, which shows the balance of the batting line’s position, has a very high correlation with actual scoring or offensive WAR, which is an indicator of scoring productivity. However, due to technical problems, the field variables and season effects have not been weighted yet. Then, each club checked the changes this season.KIA was the last PI team in 2021. At nine offensive positions, he was ranked eighth or lower in catcher, third baseman, shortstop, and three outfield positions and designated hitter rankings. But last year, he was ranked 6th or better in every position. As a result, he tied for first place in team scoring and ranked second in offensive WAR. You have built a successful team. In April, Kiwoom acquired catcher Park Dong-won through a trade. At third base, rookie Kim Do-young performed terrifyingly, and shortstop Park Chan-ho had a career-high season. New foreign center fielder Socrates Brito and FA (free agent) right fielder Na Seong-beom have been active since the first season. The two position OPS rankings were 2nd and 1st, respectively. Veteran Choi Hyeong-woo performed better than in 2021, with the number of full-time designated hitters decreasing throughout the league. However, this season, while losing Park Dong-won as a free agent, there is no new free agent recruitment. Behind the contract failure of Park Dong-won is the scandal of former general manager Jang Jeong-seok’s demand for back money. This is an example of how moral hazard can ruin an organization. Na Seong-beom, Kim Do-young, and starting second baseman Kim Seon-bin were injured before and after the opening series. Choi Hyeong-woo celebrates his 40th birthday this year. The question mark is whether it will be able to repeat last year’s success.LG was third in team scoring last year. It was practically the strongest batting line in that it uses Jamsil Stadium as its home, which is disadvantageous to batters. Offensive WAR was second behind 1994, the team’s all-time best season. The PI ranking also rose from 8th in 2021 to 2nd last year. LG has traditionally been strong in the outfield. In 2022, the infield has also become stronger. Chae Eun-seong and Song Chan-eui played an active role in first base and Moon Bo-kyung improved greatly from third base with an OPS of 0.825 in 749 innings. And Oh Ji-hwan became the best shortstop in the league last year. Offseason catcher Yoo Kang-nam was sent to Lotte as a free agent, but Park Dong-won was recruited from KIA. The LG batting line achieved success last year with little help from foreign hitters. Rio Ruiz and Adonis Garcia’s combined WAR was just 0.14 wins. Even if Austin Dean averages only foreign hitters in the league, LG is highly likely to maintain last year’s offensive power.SSG was the strongest batting line in 2021. 1st place with an OPS of 0.775. But last year it fell to third place. The PI ranking also changed the same from 1st to 3rd. Choi Jeong-eun was the best third baseman in the league in 2022. Park Seong-han recorded a batting average of 30% as a shortstop for two consecutive seasons. Center fielder Choi Ji-hoon, right fielder Hanyu-seom, and designated hitter Choo Shin-soo maintained their position competitiveness at the top of the league. However, the catcher, second baseman, and left fielder positions were less productive. Catcher Lee Jae-won has been sluggish for two seasons in a row, and Kim Min-sik, who was acquired through a trade in May, was no less successful. Second baseman Choi Joo-hwan had his worst season. Left field weakness has become a tradition. There is no left fielder who has played more than 300 at-bats in the season since SK in 2018. The KBO League introduced a salary cap starting this year. Teams with many high-paying players whose skills are on the decline will find it more difficult to form a team. Lee Jae-won and Choi Joo-hwan are 35 years old, and Choo Shin-soo is 41 years old. Lee Jae-won lost his starting position in the opening game.
■ NC PI 5.3 (tied for 4th place) Offensive WAR 20.93 (5th place)
NC’s hitting last year was disappointing. Much of it was a predestined outcome. Signboard hitter Na Seong-beom was lost to free agency, and above all, second baseman Park Min-woo, third baseman Park Seok-min, outfielders Lee Myung-gi, and Kwon Hee-dong were unable to play for a while after the opening due to disciplinary action for violating the Corona 19 quarantine rules in 2021. The first baseman’s OPS ranking was ninth or lower for two consecutive seasons. The position that requires the most offensive power is the weak point. FA right fielder Son Ah-seop fell short of his predecessor, Na Seong-beom. There was an omen. In 2021, Lotte had only 3 home runs, and last year, there were only 4 home runs. However, there was no position that was significantly sluggish despite the bad news. Kim Joo-won and Do Tae-hoon played instead of second base, where Park Min-woo was sluggish, and posted OPS of 0.900 or more each. The position OPS ranking rose from 8th to 3rd. Following Na Seong-beom last year, NC lost the pillar of catcher Yang Eui-ji this year. Although he recruited Park Se-hyeok, who obtained FA qualification from Doosan, there is a big gap with Yang Eui-ji in terms of attack power. NC is a team with a small difference in OPS by position. It’s good that there are fewer positions that tilt sharply. But it feels like a downgrade. The departure of Noh Jin-hyeok, who played an active role as a shortstop and third baseman last year, is also a significant blow.
■ Lotte PI 5.3 (tied for 4th place) Offensive WAR 16.62 (9th place)
Lotte is a team that goes the opposite way to PI. Last year, PI complied with a tie for 4th place, but offensive WAR was 9th, ahead of only Hanwha. PI is the average OPS value for each position. The standard deviation, which indicates the degree of deviation from the mean, was the second highest at 3.41. There was a large gap with NC (2.5), which was tied for second place in PI. There were a lot of positions that were at the bottom. Catcher, a chronic problem, ranked 10th in OPS, shortstop 9th, and first baseman 8th. That’s why offseason FA catcher Kang-Nam Yoo and shortstop Jin-Hyuk Noh were recruited. Lotte ranked first overall with a total annual salary of 10.2 billion won for domestic players in 2020, but was at the bottom. In the next two seasons, he significantly reduced his size. Last year it was 60 billion won. At the time of Lee Dae-ho’s retirement, he opened his wallet. Kang-Nam Yoo and Jin-Hyuk Noh were rarely evaluated as ‘the best’ in their positions. However, the productivity of Lotte’s existing position was very low. Lotte’s performance can rise significantly even if it records only average performance without injury. As a result, it was wise not to catch Son Ah-seop, a free agent right fielder last year. Thanks to the performances of Koh Seung-min and Jack Rex, the OPS and rankings in right field both rose last year.
■ Samsung PI 5.7 (6th) Attack WAR 20.58 (7th)
Samsung’s scoring ability last year did not look bad on the outside. Both actual points and OPS were 4th in the league. However, the PI ranking was 6th. OPS standard deviation by position was 3.37, the third highest. That’s why there was a lot of concentration on a specific position. Kang Min-ho and Kim Tae-goon’s catcher and Oh Jae-il’s first baseman were in the upper ranks. Above all, left fielder Jose Pirella played an active role as the best foreign hitter last year. However, third basemen and center fielders were 10th, designated hitters were 8th, and second basemen were 7th. Due to Koo Ja-wook’s sluggish performance, the right fielder’s OPS ranking dropped from 2nd to 6th. Including pitchers, Samsung’s dependence on foreign players last year was unprecedentedly high. Nevertheless, the total annual salary of domestic players was second only to SSG. In the salary cap system, it is a very difficult condition to seek reinforcement of power through the recruitment of free agents. In fact, no players were brought as free agents during the offseason, and infielders Kim Sang-soo and Oh Seon-jin transferred to free agency. Koo Ja-wook’s revival is to be expected, but he has to produce results from internal training. In this respect, it is noteworthy that they recruited Yoshiie Tachibana from Softbank, a Japanese professional baseball team, as the hitting coach for the second team.
■ Doosan PI 6.2 (7th) Offensive WAR 18.32 (8th)
‘Hwasubun baseball’ has reached its limit. The team OPS ranking fell from 5th in 2021 to 9th last year. PI also fell from 5th to 7th. A drop in rankings occurred in six positions amid a drop in overall productivity. Last year, out of 10 clubs, the only two positions that were more competitive than 4th place were 3rd baseman (3rd place), where Heo Gyeong-min was revived, and left fielder (3rd place), where Kim Jae-hwan, the main catcher, held out. Shortstop (10th), center field (9th), and right field (8th) positions were serious. Catcher was the most ranked position, going from 10th in 2021 to 6th last year. However, Doosan’s biggest offseason investment was the recruitment of free agent catcher Yang Eui-ji. It is like exchanging Park Se-hyeok with NC. Last year, Yang Eui-ji excelled with a WAR of 4.98 wins. However, if you subtract Park Se-hyeok’s WAR, it is 3.82 wins. He was a recruitment that strengthened strengths rather than reinforcing weaknesses. A question mark is attached to whether this strategy suits Doosan this year. It’s a good sign that new right fielder Jose Rojas hit a three-run homer to end the opening game.
■ Kiwoom PI 6.4 (tied for 8th) Offensive WAR 21.43 (4th)
Kiwoom ranked 8th in scoring last year. PI is also tied for 8th place. By the way, I was ranked 4th in WAR. It can be explained by the name Lee Jung-hoo. Last year, Lee Jung-hoo’s offensive WAR was 9.23 wins, accounting for 43.1% of the team’s total lineups. Perhaps this is an unprecedented proportion in professional baseball. Kiwoom’s OPS standard deviation by position was 3.66, the largest among 10 clubs. The center fielder Lee Jung-hoo guarded and the second baseman Kim Hye-seong, the main player, were ranked first overall. However, the first baseman, left fielder, and designated hitter positions were last. The last three positions is the most among 10 clubs. The catcher was 8th and the 3rd baseman was 9th. The reason for devising the PI indicator was that position balance was more important than relying on a specific hard hitter. This does not apply to Lee Jung-hoo and Kiwoom last year. Kiwoom is a team that must trust Lee Jung-hoo this year as well. There is no clear power reinforcement other than Lee Hyeong-jong, who was recruited as a Futures free agent. The number of foreign batters replaced by Addison Russell from Yasiel Puig is inferior to last year in terms of offense.
■ KT PI 6.4 (joint 8th place) Offensive WAR 19.09 (7th place)
KT’s Team OPS fell from 6th in 2021 to 7th last year. PI got worse from 4th to 8th. In 2021, the OPS ranking dropped by five positions year-over-year. In 2022, the ranking dropped in the same five positions. That’s a very bad sign. Last year, KT recruited Geopo Park Byeong-ho. Originally, Byeong-ho Park’s position was designated hitter. However, because of Kang Baek-ho’s injury, he moved to first base. Although the owner of the first baseman has changed, the ranking has remained the same. However, Kang Baek-ho suffered the worst sluggishness, with an OPS of 0.683 in 62 games, and the effect of increasing power disappeared. KT Ya Soo-jin needs a rebuild. The OPS rankings by position were 10th for second basemen, 9th for designated hitters, and 8th for third basemen, shortstops, center fielders, and right fielders. The 5 positions below 8th place were tied with Hanwha. Kim Sang-soo, who was recruited as a free agent, will not be of much help in offense. Shortstop Shim Woo-jun, the starting pitcher, enlisted in Sangmu, and the center fielder assigned to the team suffered a fractured left little finger during an exhibition game. We should expect the resurrection of Kang Baek-ho.
■ Hanwha PI 6.7 (10th) Offensive WAR 13.49 (10th)
Hanwha was the weakest batting line in 10 clubs in 2022. Actual points, OPS, WAR, and PI were all at the bottom. The OPS standard deviation by position was the lowest at 1.78. That is, not evenly. In all nine positions, the OPS ranking was 5th or lower. Right fielders ranked 10th, left fielders ranked 9th, catchers, first basemen, and shortstops ranked 7th. In 2021, Hanwha second baseman Jeong Eun-won and third baseman Noh Si-hwan performed at the top. However, last year, all of them were sluggish, dropping three places in the rankings. The positions that showed a significant increase were center fielder (+5) and designated hitter (+4) held by Mike Tuchman. However, Tuchman left the team, and there was no clear starter at the designated hitter spot. Kim In-hwan’s 116 plate appearances was the most on the team. During the offseason, Hanwha acquired first baseman Chae Eun-seong and infielder Oh Seon-jin as free agents, and outfielder Lee Myeong-ki and free agent trades. The existing power is so weak that it will help. However, starting shortstop Ha Joo-seok was suspended for 70 games for drunk driving. KIA, which was last in scoring in 2021, transformed into a top-tier batting team in the league last year. At present, it seems unlikely that this will happen.